Churchill to Add Jackpot-Type Wager

Bet will pay out on the jackpot pool when there is only one correct winner.

Churchill Downs will debut a 50-cent "Single 6 Jackpot," a multi-race wager with a big-payout dynamic, when racing returns to the Louisville racetrack for its 25-day fall meet Oct. 27.

Much like its conventional $2 Pick 6 predecessor, the Single 6 Jackpot will challenge bettors to correctly pick the winners of six consecutive races. But there's an exciting new twist with the potential of a big payday if there's only one winning wager in the sequence.

Bettors that have the highest number of winners in the six-race sequence will equally share 80% of the net money wagered into the pool, minus takeout. The remaining 20% of the net pool, however, will carry to the Single 6 Jackpot if there are multiple winning wagers with six winners placed at the required 50-cent minimum bet value.

The Single 6 Jackpot will be paid out only if there is a single winning wager with six winners placed at the required minimum bet value.

Again, there can be only one winning wager for the jackpot to be paid. If a bettor hits the Single 6 Jackpot twice on one ticket, meaning he or she "scratched into the favorite" and used both horses in the race; or used two horses in a race and they finished in a dead-heat; or played the same 50-cent ticket twice for a total of $1, he or she is not eligible for the jackpot aspect. There can only be a single winning wager placed at the required minimum bet value for the jackpot to be paid.

The low probability of a single winning wager means there's a high chance for the jackpot to grow daily and reach lottery-like levels, which creates tremendous excitement and the possibility of a financial windfall and score of a lifetime.

There is one exception: the jackpot must be paid out on the final day of the five-week meet (Nov. 30), which means all money, including the jackpot, will be distributed that day to those with the highest number of winners in the six-race sequence.

The new wager is similar to other variations of the Pick 6 that offer jackpots with a unique carryover aspect. However, Churchill Downs' Single 6 Jackpot features a more bettor-friendly 80/20 split of the net pool compared to the 60/40 distribution in some jurisdictions.

Because there is a unique carryover facet, there will be no minor consolation payoffs when there are multiple winning wagers with six winners.

Churchill Downs received approval to offer the wager to bettors during a Kentucky Horse Racing Commission meeting in Lexington Oct. 22.